


In Which Ukai is a Demon and Takeda is Scared

by Toboe1087



Series: Shared Memories [6]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-05
Updated: 2019-07-05
Packaged: 2020-06-09 18:32:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,608
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19481620
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Toboe1087/pseuds/Toboe1087
Summary: Takeda’s soulmate scared him. A lot. Ukai just wondered how on earth he got stuck with a scaredy cat nerd.





	In Which Ukai is a Demon and Takeda is Scared

**Author's Note:**

> Obviously, I own none of the rights to this series. Those belong to Haruichi Furudate, along with whatever publishers, producers, etc., are involved with the series.

Ittetsu had always been scared of his soulmate.

The first few memories Ittetsu had ever relived from his soulmate had been of the boy up high in a tree (Ittetsu was scared of heights) and then him holding up a tarantula to his friend (Ittetsu was also scared of spiders).

Ittetsu was almost positive the universe had decided to curse him with a demon for a soulmate. What he’d done to deserve this, he wasn’t quite sure, but each successive memory he experienced only cemented this hypothesis. 

The boy chased after snakes, made sling shots to shoot toads, wallowed in mud pits, and yelled at his parents and grandparents. Then the boy grew older and it became worse. He cursed, pierced his ears (and _that_ hadn’t been a pleasant memory), smoked, and drank. A lot. 

Ittetsu was, however, reasonably sure that he would not meet this demon any time soon. After all, the demon clearly lived out in the country, while Ittetsu lived in Tokyo. 

The day Ittetsu was first hired to teach Japanese literature was supposed to be a happy day. Supposed to be. The first school district that offered him a job, though, had been in a rural town in Miyagi prefecture. For the first time in his life, Ittetsu would be living in the country, just like his soulmate.

Ittetsu had accepted the job with no small amount of trepidation.

He knew it wasn’t normal to fear his soulmate like this. The man was probably, _probably_ perfectly normal and fine, just… loud. And rowdy. And a daredevil. And outdoorsy. And involved in sports. All of which were qualities that Ittetsu wasn’t exactly fond of, so he wasn’t quite sure how the demon child was supposed to be his soulmate, even if he had grown up.

At first, everything had seemed fine. There were no demon twenty year olds on staff, and Ittetsu had even cautiously taken on the position of faculty advisor for the volleyball club, despite the fact that he knew his soulmate enjoyed the sport.

Maybe, just maybe, knowing about this sport would help make his soulmate seem less demon-like? After all, they were supposed to be perfect for each other… somehow.

When Ittetsu had shown up at the gym the first day to help out, it had taken every ounce of willpower not to flee. 

Ukai.

Coach Ukai. Why had he never asked for the coach’s name? He’d _known_ that his soulmate’s grandfather was a volleyball coach!

And now Ittetsu was staring at that same withered face that he’d seen in so many memories.

He swallowed nervously. What should he say? Hi, nice to meet you, do you have a demon grandson because I’m pretty sure you’re my soulmate’s grandfather?

That was hardly a good introduction, nor was it very professional.

No, that wouldn’t do. He’d just have to… wait and get to know the man. Yes. That is what he would do. Wait.

But then he realized that his soulmate may have inherited his demon-like qualities, and that his grandfather was really quite frightening, too. 

So Ittetsu never quite managed to say anything to the old man.

And then Coach Ukai hurt his back and had to be in the hospital for a while and… well, that was that.

No more demon soulmate to worry about, and Ittetsu could focus on teaching.

Except, he was still the advisor to the volleyball club… Ittetsu sighed. He needed to track down a new coach for them, and that was a lot easier said than done. Every person he asked said no, and only a few could offer a different lead. 

Ittetsu banged his head on his desk. There had to be someone else. Someone besides the one name left on the list that he absolutely did _not_ want to contact.

Ukai.

Ukai Keishin, the grandson of their last coach and the man who apparently just so happened to work at a convenience store around the corner from the school (the coach had dropped that detail in conversation one day and after that Ittetsu had very purposefully never visited the store).

But Ittetsu had tried everyone—most people more than once—and he’d spent his whole life scared of this person and running away from him and maybe… maybe this was fate laughing at him.

Nervously, Ittetsu dialed the number. 

“Hello, Sakanoshita General Store, this is Ukai speaking.”

That _voice_. Ittetsu couldn’t do this. 

“Hello?”

Ittetsu hung up.

It was incredibly rude of him, and he felt terrible about it, but hearing that voice—the voice from his soulmate’s memories, and having it all _confirmed_ …

“Takeda-san, are you alright?”

“Yes!” His voice came out as a squeak as Ittetsu shot upright in his chair. “Yes, I’m fine, thank you.” He adjusted his glasses and smiled nervously at the other teacher. After a few seconds, the woman shrugged and walked away, apparently satisfied.

Takeda sighed and slouched over in his chair.

Tomorrow.

He’d call again tomorrow. The boys desperately needed a coach, and he was their faculty advisor. He had to do this for them.

But tomorrow came, and Ittetsu was no more prepared than he had been the previous day. Fingers shaking, he dialed the number once more. 

“Sakanoshita General Store, this is Ukai speaking.”

What if he could tell from his voice? Surely he couldn’t tell from his voice. Voices sounded different over the phone, right? Ittetsu swallowed nervously, “H-hello. T-this is Ta-take-takeda I-Itetsu from t-the high s-school.”

“Huh? Listen man, I can’t really understand what you’re saying. You’re calling from the school?”

“Y-yes! You, umm… you used to play vol-volleyball here, r-right? We, we umm, we need a n-new c-coach.”

“Jeez, I’m not interested in that shit. That was my old man’s deal. Sorry, but you’ll have to try someone else.”

The line went dead.

He… he hadn’t recognized his name. Or his voice. Ittetsu grinned, elated. That meant he was still unknown! But… his mood crashed. He needed a coach. And every other person had been a dead end but _this_ person, his soulmate… if he knew that connection, surely he would reconsider? 

No, no he couldn’t use his soulmate connection to make the man coach these boys. They deserved a coach that wanted to coach them for their own sake. So… so he would just have to keep calling. Calling was safe, apparently. 

So the next day, Ittetsu once again picked up the phone.

And the next.

And the next.

And… well, for the next several days after that, too.

Ittetsu groaned. Apparently, calling wasn’t going to be enough. He was going to have to meet the demon if he wanted the man to coach these boys.

He really didn’t want to. He’d avoided anything to do with the demon for his whole life. But… these boys really deserved to have a coach. And they really needed one. 

So Ittetsu gathered his things, straightened his jacket, and went to meet with the devil.

The devil who was apparently ridiculously handsome and had dyed his hair blonde at some point and Ittetsu didn’t even realize that was a _thing_ for him, but apparently it was and even those evil piercings looked good and….

He needed to calm down.

Ittetsu backed slowly away from the store’s glass windows. Maybe there was another worker at the general store who was in his 20s and had two piercings in his left ear?

Who was he kidding, that had to have been the demon. Deep breaths Ittetsu, deep breaths. He could do this.

Nodding to himself, Ittetsu started forward once again, this time making it through the glass doors. 

“Welcome!” the man’s voice sounded deeper than it had over the phone, and Ittetsu was about to have a panic attack. Surely the demon recognized him? Who knows what signs the man had seen in his own memories to point him toward Ittetsu! But… but the demon wasn’t acting like anything out of the normal was happening.

Cautiously, Ittetsu approached the counter. “Ummm…Are you Ukai-san?”

The demon’s eyes narrowed, “I know that voice… are you the sensei?” 

Ittetsu hesitantly nodded. 

Ukai groaned, “Look, I’ve told you, I’m not interested in coaching. You coming here in person isn’t going to change that.”

“But if you would just see the boys—”

“I’ve seen the boys, sensei. They come here every day after practice and get snacks. They look like your average team.”

“If you could see them _play_ , I mean! I may not know much about volleyball, but I don’t you can tell too much about them as players just from seeing them in a store—”

“I can tell that a lot of them have bad diets and that the first years all need more muscle on them.” 

“See! I don’t even know these things. They really need a coach. Please, Ukai-san.”

“No.” The demon glared at him, causing Ittetsu to stumble back a few steps. “Now buy something or get out.”

Ittetsu fled.

The demon hadn’t recognized him. He’d interacted with his soulmate, but he hadn’t been recognized! Ittetsu smiled. As long as he avoided touching the man, then, and didn’t stay around him too much so that they never got to know each other, then the boys could have their coach, and Ittetsu could continue living his peaceful, demon-free life. 

He just needed to find a way to convince the demon to coach the boys.

…

Wait.

How could he not have thought of this before? Ittetsu grinned. He knew _exactly_ what would work. Out of all the memories he’d seen, there was one thing that never failed to make the demon angry and riled up.

Nekoma.

Ittetsu ran back to his office.

He had another call to make. 

Well, apparently another several calls. The Nekoma coach wasn’t easy to persuade, which was understandable given Karasuno team’s current status, but after Ittetsu caved and told the old man _why_ he was so desperate, the coach had started cackling and said he would be glad to help give the younger Ukai a kick in the butt to motivate him.

So exactly two weeks after their first meeting, Ittetsu walked back into Sakanoshita General Store, this time with a plan.

The second the doors slid open, Ukai looked up and groaned. “I thought you finally gave up after last time.”

Ittetsu shook his head, “Those boys need a coach, and I think you’re the right man for the job.”

“Because of my name. You think I’m the one you need because of my name, right?”

“I—I’m not going to lie, Ukai-san, your name is a factor, but it’s not—”

“Look, I’m not my grandfather. I’m not a coach.”

Ittetsu groaned, covering his face with his hand. This wasn’t going how he had planned! He looked the other man in the eye, determined to persuade him. “The team is having a practice match with Nekoma at the end of Golden Week!”

Ukai just stared at him.

Ittetsu plowed on, “The boys aren’t ready, though. They need a coach! They have good moves, I know they really have something special, but they need a coach!”

A slow smirk spread across the demon’s face.

Ittetsu swallowed in fear.

“Let’s shake on it, Sensei.” 

“W-what?!” Ittetsu squeaked. But… that would mean contact! Physical contact! Then Ukai would know… the demon would know…. But the boys…

“If you’ll shake my hand, I’ll coach the boys until their match with Nekoma.”

“What?!” Ittetsu glared at the demon. “No, you… you have to be their coach for at least a year!”

Ukai’s eyebrow twitched in annoyance. “Don’t push your luck, Sensei. I don’t want the team to lose against Nekoma, but I ain’t—”

“Stay with them for a year. If it doesn’t work out, I’ll find someone else, but please. They need a coach. Give me some time to find someone else if you won’t do it.”

“Tch.” Ukai took the cigarette out of his mouth and rubbed it down into the tray. “Fine. You drive a hard bargain, Sensei, but I’ll do it. One year.” He held out his hand, “ _If_ you’ll shake on it.”

“W-Why the insistence on the hand shake? I-I c-could draw up a c-contract or s-something.”

A smirk. “Why are you trying to avoid it, Sensei?”

There was a mischievous glint in the demon’s eye that Ittetsu did _not_ like. Surely he hadn’t figured it out…?

Well, the demon would know in a few seconds, if he didn’t already.

Ittetsu closed his eyes tightly. He was doing this for the boys. He could… he could still avoid the man if they didn’t get along, right?

Cautiously, he extended his right hand. 

Immediately a warm, calloused hand took his own.

Ittetsu’s eyes widened he felt… it felt… like… like he was a leaf in the middle of a small brook that had suddenly become a big river, and all the water was rushing past him and all he could do was just cling to this one rock to avoid being swept away.

His eyes met Ukai’s.

Despite the fact that this man was such a reckless idiot that it scared Ittetsu to death, Ukai’s hand felt warm and… and safe. 

“Thought so.” Ukai’s smirk widened and Ittetsu yelped as the man’s grip shifted and he pulled Ittetsu closer. He leaned down to whisper in Ittetsu’s ear, “Any reason you’ve been trying to hide that from me, Sensei?”

Ittetsu blushed, turning away to hide his face. Up close, Ukai smelled like cigarettes and grass and it was… it was a pleasant smell. 

His face turned redder. 

“I... I just….” He looked down at the ground, staring at both of their feet. At Ukai’s stained tennis shoes and his own polished business shoes. When he spoke again, his voice came out as a whisper, “You’ve always scared me.” 

Ukai let out a booming laugh, “Really? Me?” His hand threaded through Ittetsu’s hair, ruffling it. “You ain’t never gotta be afraid of me, man. I’ll chase all the scary things away for you, alright?”

Ittetsu looked up to glare at his demon soulmate. “I’m not five anymore! You’re just not the kind of person I usually spend time with, that’s all. I didn’t know what to expect.”

“I’m just teasing!” He held his hands up in a defensive gesture. “Now, you gave up your precious privacy for this team of yours, so you gonna introduce me to them?”

Ittetsu grinned, half-running him towards the doors, “Yes, yes! They should still be at practice—”

“Woah! Steady there, at least let me close up!” 

“R-right!” 

Ukai laughed again. “It was that stutter that gave you away, you know. That weird combination of nervousness and pure determination. Well, your voice also sounded familiar, but it took me a while to figure out why. And then there’s the fact that you knew to go look up Nekoma in order to get me to coach… there were a lot of clues, really.” He gave Ittetsu’s hand a squeeze before letting go and calling something out to the backroom and locking up the cash register. 

He held out his hand when he reached the doors again, “Do I have to agree to coach for another year before you’ll hold my hand again?”

Ittetsu felt his cheeks turning red again as he took the man’s hand. “No. I’m not shy about physical contact or anything, I just—”

“Man, you’re fun to tease.” Ukai was grinning, “I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of seeing you all flustered like this.”

Ittetsu groaned. The man really was a demon, but it might be for an entirely different reason than he’d initially suspected.

**Author's Note:**

> So I've wanted to write a one-shot for this pairing for a while now, actually, and I finally just sat down today and got it all onto the page :) hope y'all enjoyed it! 
> 
> If you'd like to talk about my work/writing in general/anime in general, feel free to come join us in my discord server! We're always happy to have more members. https://discord.gg/BDZGCBa


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